Verizon & T-Mobile Going to Swap Radio Spectrum

T-Mobile USA has announced a deal to swap blocks of radio spectrum with Verizon Wireless in 218 markets across the country. T-Mobile said the purchase will improve its spectrum position in 15 of the top 25 markets in the USA.

The deal would be dependent on forthcoming Verizon spectrum purchases, currently being scrutinized by the FCC. But, if the deals with SpectrumCo, Cox, and Leap go through, T-Mobile will get its LTE groundwork.

For iPhone users, this deal is particularly interesting, especially if you’ve already been using Apple’s smartphone on T-Mobile’s existing HSPA+ network. T-Mobile already offers tremendous support for the iPhone on its network even though it is not officially part of Apple’s sales partnership.

“This agreement will provide T-Mobile with critical AWS spectrum, enhancing both network capacity and performance and allowing us to meet the growing consumer demand for 4G mobile broadband,” T-Mobile CEO and President Philipp Humm said in a statement. “We anticipate FCC approval later this summer, in time for us to incorporate this new spectrum into our network modernization and the rollout of LTE services next year.” he added.